Ahhhhh another victim of not knowing what he's buying, I love it. If only he had checked the manual first.

Welcome to the world of owning the most expensive pick-up out of the big three today. Dodge is hands-down the most up-keep pick-up for maintenance intevals on the market.

That's right, every 15,000 miles. Don't forget your spark plugs at 30,000 and if it's a HEMI there's 16, not 8. Keep reading it get's better...BWA!!

BTW, If you elect not to change your differential oil and it does go out forget about Dodge covering it. It'll be your dollar. Better keep the receipts if you do it yourself.

I never cease to be amazed at this oversight.

H.H. [X(]

 

DO IT!! I bought my '03 with 30k miles on it a year ago. I put 12k on it and took it in for the change. The internals fell apart because the owner before me didn't do it. I now have a whole new rear end covered by Chrysler warranty. Thank God. That would have been expensive. So I say, suck it up and spend the extra cash, or do it yourself. Will save you in the long run.

 

Since about 1994 Dodge has had numerous quality control issues with the 9.25 'corporate' differential, which 'used to be' reliable back in the 1980s.

Bad pinion bearings,
bad shaft seals,
bad clips in the limited slip units,
pinion nuts without sufficient locktite,
the list goes on....

Every Dodge owner should be aware of this.
Do some Google searches at this and the other Dodge pickup websites.

Dodge is presently buying their axles from 'American Axle' which is a former GM iron foundary that was bought in a 'spin off' by some ex-Chrysler guys after they lost their jobs in the german take over. AAM got all the rights to the GM differential designs. You may have noticed that Dodge switched over to the GM design differentials in the 2500/3500 Ram 3 years ago. Dodge now needs to switch the 1500 Rams to a more reliable design.

Rather than arguing about whether you can go more than 15,000 miles on a differential service my advice would be to check your differential often - both for lube and for a change in noise.

 

$170!!!! Holy s#!t! Lucas Oil cost me $20 and then a $3 tube of RTV. Even the litle quick lube shops around here only charge $45 a diff. The Mobil 1 synth blend was the same price as the Lucas at Autozone.

 

I was just wondering......if I elect to do a differential change myself and I keep all the receipts but lets say I waited until 25,000 miles to do it instead of 15,000, would the dealership have any way of verifying the actual mileage of my truck when it was done?

 

That's something you have to decide for yourself. Every dealership is different so who knows. You're basically playing craps and the odds are in the dealership' favor.

All I can say is a co-worker of mine told me a story of his son who has a Dodge Ram. He neglected changing the the rear oil and the differential went out. The dealer refused to cover the expenses because he didn't follow the manual.

Your choice, you decide....

H.H.

 

That's something you have to decide for yourself. Every dealership is different so who knows. You're basically playing craps and the odds are in the dealership's favor.

All I can say is a co-worker of mine told me a story of his son who has a Dodge Ram. He neglected changing the the rear oil and the differential went out. The dealer refused to cover the expenses because he didn't follow the manual.

Your choice, you decide....

H.H.

 

If you have a Chrysler vehicle with the 9.25 differential I suggest you make yourself a sign and glue it to the inside of the fuel tank door that says 'Check the look and sound of the differential'

If your vehicle is still under warranty I suggest before your warranty miles or time period expires that you PUT IN WRITING a complaint that you hand a copy of in person to the dealership service manager that you think your differential is making a different noise and 'thunking' more and that you want it replaced.

Having this written complaint in the official records may save you hundreds of dollars later if the 9.25 fails - and will be your main ammunition with the DCx regional service representative when you are bargaining that DCx should at least share half the cost.

Chrysler had a problem with the Magnum engines plenum gaskets that they never officially admitted to and did not properly fix, and because enough Ram owners did not complain enough about DCx got away with it.

Chrysler had a problem with the catalytic converters on Ram trucks that eventually they were dragged 'Kicking & Whining' into recalling - but because the 1992-1995 Ram owners did not file enough complaints DCx got to ignor those years - EVEN THOUGH THE EXACT SAME CONVERTER DESIGN WAS USED.

Chrysler PRESENTLY has a problem with 'Hemi Tick' that they are not officially admitting to and are not properly fixing.

Chrysler PRESENTLY has multiple problems with the 9.25 differential that they are not officially admitting to and not properly fixing.

Defend yourself & help your fellow Ram owners.

 

See my other post with my other pics in it... there is a link in it.

https://dodgeforum.com/m_498873/tm.htm

 

See my other post with my other pics in it... there is a link in it.

https://dodgeforum.com/m_498873/tm.htm